The Greek Orthodox Church and Monastery of St. John the Baptist dominate the baptistry site “Bethany Beyond the Jordan/Al-Maghtas”, a Unesco monument
On the eastern side of the Jordan River, in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, thousands of pilgrims and visitors flock every year and are constantly increasing to get to know the baptism site “Bethany Beyond the Jordan/ Al-Maqtas” (Baptism Site “Bethany Beyond the Jordan/ Al -Maghtas”), included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Christians are gathered there and Orthodox, Catholics, Russians, Armenians, Copts coexist, while new churches continue to be added.
“We are at the lowest point on Earth (about 400m below the surface of the Mediterranean Sea) and this symbolizes the value of being humble,” says Rustom Mkhjian, director general of the Baptism Site committee.
“The Holy Places of Jordan are a place where people come from all over the world to see the place where Christ was baptized and other places mentioned in the Bible. It is the only place where all the Christian churches have gathered and continue to do so, and it is a point of reference,” notes Mr. Mkhjian.
The Greek Orthodox Church of St. John the Baptist and the Monastery of St. John the Baptist have a significant presence and in fact, as Mr. Mkhjian reports, the Church of St. John the Baptist was the first to be built 20 years ago.
“Not only pilgrims but also tourists who want to see other parts of Jordan come to the Baptism site. They combine it. Of course, it is a sacred space and we want to preserve it that way. It is the place of Saint John the Baptist and the place where Jesus was baptized, while there are many other important places with biblical references.”
Religious tourism is a very important part of Jordan’s tourism product. The baptismal site combined with Mount Nembo, from where it is said that Moses saw the Promised Land, Mandaba, the city of mosaics, where one of the oldest and most important mosaic maps of the Middle East is preserved in the church of Saint George, they create a religious, historical and cultural tourist route.
In fact, according to the data of the Jordan Tourism Commission, Mount Nebo is the second most popular place in terms of visitors after the archaeological site of Petra.
As Miss Manda, honorary consul of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, points out, a cooperation agreement has been signed with the Holy Synod of Greece and the Jordanian Tourism Organization with the aim of highlighting the many points of religious interest, especially from the Old Testament, in the land of Jordan.
Next steps are the construction of a website only for religious tourism and in the Greek language, where one can read about the approximately 100 religious monuments of Christianity in the land of Jordan and organize their trip.
Source :Skai
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